‘Life along the river in the Northeast’, A series of short films on the North East Back
Eminent film maker, Mr. Bappa Ray, has made a series of short films for the ICH Division on the life along the Brahmaputra river in the northeast. The focus of the series is on women as custodians of Intangible Heritage in the Northeast. Various tribes and communities have been documented for this.
The Buddhist Memba community of the last Indian border village of Gelling village is mainly agriculturalist in nature. They lead a simple life along the river. Exquisite shawls and carpets are woven by them.
The agrarian Adi community along the Siang river in the Upper Siang Valley are known to have shifted from Jhum cultivation to terrace farming using indigenous methods of water channelling. They display an inherent respect for nature and the environment in their lifestyle. The river serves as a bountiful resource for fishing. Weaving is intrinsic to their lifestyle and intricate weaving patterns go back many generations and reveal exemplary craftsmanship. Rice is their staple food. They also have traditional methods and expertise in creating suspension bridges out of cane and wires over the river. The traditional Ponung dance, mainly performed by the women of the community expresses mythological tales and celebrates festivals.
The peace loving Mishmi reside along the Dibang and Lohit rivers. Traditionally warriors, the Mishmi are famous for their costumes, complex jewellery making skills and weaving.
The Mising inhabit almost all the districts of Assam and are closely related to the Adi community of Arunachal Pradesh. They have mastered the art of coexisting with nature, unperturbed by the annual floods.
The Bodo are said to be the first inhabitants of the Brahmaputra valley that have settled in the plains between Dhubri and Sadiya. The Bodo community has contributed immensely to the composite culture of Assam.
The short feature on Majuli explores a rich resource of Assamese culture and rich diversity. Vaishnavite culture is at the core of Majuli and there are numerous satras here. The location of the satras is mainly river centric and the reason behind this is to observe the ritual of religious ablution. The concept of satra living and its relation to education is explained, following the principles expounded by Srimanta Shankaradeva as seen in the theatre, dance, music and literature of the Majuli village.
Dances of the Northeast: Another clip showcase various dances of the Northeast-
- Maruni dance of the Nepali community of Sikkim
- Badoi dance of the Bodo community of Assam
- Bihu dance of the Deori community of Assam
- Kapung dance of the Khempti community of Arunachal Pradesh
- Shad Pilang dance of the Jaintiya community of Meghalaya
- Parlam (flower) dance of the Mizo community of Mizoram
- Sekrenyi dance of the Angami community of Nagaland
- Zon Loukhaw Lam dance of the Zomi community of Manipur
